Cambodia said on Tuesday it had launched a compulsory conciliation process under international law aimed at resolving a long-running maritime boundary dispute with Thailand and had informed the United Nations and Bangkok.
The move follows a Thai government decision last month to unilaterally terminate a 2001 agreement with Cambodia that provided a framework for negotiations over the disputed area in the Gulf of Thailand where the two countries’ maritime claims overlap.
“We have taken this step to protect Cambodia’s sovereignty and maritime rights in accordance with international law,” Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet said.
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Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, who made the cancellation of the 2001 pact part of his February election campaign, said he was not aware that Cambodia had initiated the conciliation process.
“Thailand has not yet determined when it will proceed further,” he told reporters.
Cambodia’s move underlines the potential divergence between the neighbours in resolving long-standing border disputes though a fragile ceasefire that ended last year’s deadly land border conflict between them continues to hold.
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